The paper presents the results of a technological study of circular ceramics from the Gnezdovsky burial ground. Analysis of the initial raw material, methods of its preparation and composition of the molding mass showed that local potters extracted clay from several sources, but the tradition of using plastic weak - and medium-sanded iron-coated clay prevailed, which was used mainly in a wet state. The dominant recipe for molding mass is clay + gravel + organic mortar. It is noticeably inferior to others: clay + gravel; clay + gravel + organic matter of unknown origin; clay + sand + organic solution. Mixing of pottery traditions is observed at the level of selection of raw materials, which is recorded in two vessels made from a mixture of two clays. The data obtained indicate a relatively heterogeneous composition of the population of Gnezdovo and the predominance of groups of potters with similar pottery traditions.

Keywords: pottery traditions, technology, raw materials, molding mass.

The Gnezdovsky complex of archaeological sites (turn IX-X-beginning XI c.) is located to the west of Smolensk on the bank of the Dnieper River. It consists of two hillforts, adjacent open settlements, and eight mound groups (see figure). Gnezdov's research, which has been going on for more than 130 years, covers a wide range of problems, and the ceramic material of the monument is considered as the most important source for studying the ethnocultural composition of the population and its origin. Traditionally, attention is paid mainly to the morphological characteristics of pottery, and individual comments about some technological details are expressed as assumptions based on visual study of ceramics.

Circular ceramics in Gnezdovo make up about 90 % and are found, along with stucco, both in the settlement and in burial mounds (Kamenetskaya, 1998, p. 125). It is most widespread in the middle and second half of the tenth century, and its appearance is associated (according to the analysis of ware forms) with the influx of population from the western and partly north-western Slavic lands, Moravia, and Southern Poland [Ibid., p. 133].

The purpose of this work is to analyze and introduce into scientific circulation the obtained data on some aspects of the production technology of Gnezdovo circular ceramics. The purpose of the study was to obtain initial information about the vessel manufacturing technology and then generalize it to identify the technological traditions of the Gnezdovsky population*.

A total of 162 vessels**were examined. They come from four mound groups of the Gnezdovsky burial ground

* I would like to express my sincere gratitude to A. A. Bobrinsky, Yu. B.Tsetlin, I. A. Gay, and T. A. Pushkina, Associate Professor of the Faculty of History of the Lomonosov Moscow State University, for their assistance in the work of the Laboratory "History of Ceramics" of the Institute of Archeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

** The paper uses collections kept at the Department of Archeology, Faculty of History, Lomonosov Moscow State University (excavations by D. A. Avdusin, T. A. Push-

Map of monuments near the village of Gnezdovo [Gnezdovsky burial ground, 1999, p. 129]. I - Central group; II-Glushchenkovskaya; III-Lesnaya; IV-VII-Dneprovskaya: IV-Pridneprovskaya, V-Dneprovskaya (eastern part), VI-Dneprovskaya (central part), VII-Dneprovskaya (western part); VIII-Olshanskaya; IX - Left bank group, a -mounds; b - large mounds; c-ancient settlements; d - territory of the village.

(Central, Lesnaya, Zaolshanskaya, and Dnipro regions) that are fairly close in time of operation, but at a certain stage they are simultaneous. Therefore, technological information on these ceramics is considered in a generalized form. The validity of this approach to the material will be confirmed in the subsequent presentation of the results of the analysis.

All the considered ceramics are included in the mound complexes as either a burial urn or a vessel accompanying the burial. Ceramics, whose connection with the mound inventory was considered doubtful (originating from the mound, filling the ditch, etc.), were not used in the work. A number of completely restored vessels remained inaccessible for technological research. In total, 68 specimens were analyzed from the materials of the Central Group, 38 from the Lesnaya Group, 48 from the Zaolshanskaya Group, and 8 from the Dnipro Group.

The technological study of ceramics was carried out according to the method of A. A. Bobrinsky [1978, 1999] within the framework of a historical and cultural approach based on knowledge about the patterns of addition and behavior of cultural traditions in pottery. Within the framework of this approach, pottery technology is considered as a source of information about the cultural and historical past of the population, and the specific labor skills used to make ceramics are primarily identified, accounted for and studied.

A. A. Bobrinsky considers pottery technology as a specially organized system of labor skills. There are three main stages of pottery production, which are divided into stages::

I. Preparatory stage: 1) selection, 2) extraction, 3) preparation of raw materials, 4) preparation of molding masses;

II. Creative stage, including the construction of the vessel: 5) production of the filling, 6) hollow body, 7) shaping, 8) mechanical methods of surface treatment;

III. Fixing stage: 9) making the products strong, 10) waterproof.

The stable state of the pottery technology system is primarily ensured by the empirical nature of knowledge about the technology and its transfer from generation to generation, mainly along related lines, and is manifested in the immutability of labor skills. It characterizes a certain isolation in relation to the surrounding world of the carriers of such technology.

kinoy 1973, 1974, 1976 - 1989, 1991 - 1993 years) and in the Smolensk State Museum-Reserve (excavations by D. A. Avdusin 1949, 1950).

The conditions in which a potter is forced to innovate in the technology system he uses arise when he enters a production area where other technological traditions prevail. The potter adapts to them, but does not break his own system. To" build " new skills into it, he combines them with his previous skills in solving a particular narrow technological problem, which leads to the formation of mixed (hybrid) methods for its implementation. Thus, the facts of "embedding" new skills in performing work into existing systems of technology can be considered as manifestations of mixing processes between carriers of different systems of pottery technology that arose within households whose members were related [Bobrinsky, 1999, p. 63-68].

In this paper, the preparatory stage of production is considered: selection and preparation of raw materials, preparation of molding mass. These skills are called adaptive. They can change over the course of a single generation of potters. The study included: 1) selection of ceramic samples from different vessels, 2) secondary firing of samples in a muffle furnace at a temperature of 800 °C to assess the degree of relative iron content of clay raw materials and create the same conditions for observation, 3) qualitative and quantitative analysis of the composition of clay raw materials and molding masses of ceramics. The samples were examined by fresh ceramic fractures using an MBS-10 binocular microscope.

Selection of raw materials (plastic, mineral, and organic). Natural clay was used as a plastic raw material. To determine what requirements were imposed on it, when analyzing the raw material, attention was paid to such characteristics as the relative degree of iron content of clay and the qualitative composition of natural impurities (sand, brown ironstone, limestone, etc.).

The degree of iron content was determined by the color of ceramic fragments after repeated firing in an oxidizing medium at a temperature of 800 °C. As is known, ozheleznenny clays are painted in various shades of terracotta color, and slaboozheleznenny and neozheleznenny acquire color from cream to white. Of the 162 vessels studied, 148 were made of ozheleznennoy clay, 12 - from neozheleznennoy, 2 - from a mixture of ozheleznennoy and neozheleznennoy.

The presence and characteristics of natural sand admixture in clay affect one of its most important characteristics - plasticity. Since the method of determining the plasticity of clay from burnt shards has not been developed, conclusions about this characteristic of raw materials can now be made based only on the analysis of the features of the natural admixture of sand in clay. It is known that ancient potters, as well as modern ones, used clays that are divided into fat and lean by plasticity. The fat ones contain very little or almost no pulverized sand (with a grain size of less than 0.1 mm), while the lean ones contain mostly fine rounded sand (with grains of 0.1 to 0.3 mm) or pulverized sand, often combined with individual larger rounded grains of sand [Ibid., p. 24]. To determine the degree of sandiness of clay in each sample, the amount of the following sand fractions was estimated: less than 0.1 mm; 0,10 - 0,25; 0,25 - 0,40; 0,4 - 1,0 and more than 1.0 mm. Since accurate calculations of very small fractions are difficult, the concepts of "single", "rare", "few", "is", and "a lot"were used to characterize them.

In addition to sand, the most common natural impurity in clay is brown ironstone, which is present in all samples from non-ironed and in some samples from ironed clay. Limestone is recorded only in one case (0.5 mm inclusion). The same sample contains natural inclusions of white clay shale ranging in size from 0.2 mm to 2.0×0.5 mm.

Based on the obtained data on the degree of iron content and sandiness of clays, several types can be distinguished.

Clay 1 (20 copies). Ozheleznennaya, slabozapesochennaya: single or rare grains of 0.2 - 1.0 mm in size and almost no pulverized sand. According to the degree of sandiness, clay with natural inclusions of limestone and clay shale is close to it, which can be considered as a type of clay 1 and designated 1a (1 specimen).

Clay 2 (47 copies). Ozheleznennaya, slabozapesochennaya: very little powdery sand and grains of 0.1-0.4 mm in size, sometimes single larger grains of sand.

Clay 3 (74 copies). Ozheleznennaya, srednezapesochennaya: grains of 0.1 - 0.4 mm in size, rare larger ones and little powdery sand.

Clay 4 (5 copies). Ozheleznennaya, strongly sanded: a lot of powdery sand and grains of 0.10 - 0.25 mm in size, less than 0.25 - 0.40 mm grains of sand and rare larger grains.

Clay 5 (1 copy). Ozheleznennaya, srednezapesochennaya: grains mostly up to 0.3 mm in size and rare larger ones. The smallest natural inclusions, probably of feldspar, give the fracture a characteristic shine.

Clay 6 (9 copies). Non-ironed, very slightly sanded, practically does not contain dusty sand distinguishable under the microscope, but with rare inclusions of grains of sand with a size of 0.1-0.3 mm and a unit of-

even larger grains. This clay is characterized by the presence of brown ironstone of both oolitic and clastic forms, sometimes in quite large quantities.

Clay 7 (3 copies). It is not ironed and is close to clay 3 in terms of its degree of sandiness. It contains powdery sand, grains of 0.1 - 0.3 mm in size, as well as individual grains up to 1.0 mm and larger. Brown ironstone, more often oolitic, is present in a smaller amount than in clay 6.

The natural character of sand in the described clays is indicated by its concentration and size. It is believed that sand artificially introduced into the molding mass usually has grains of more than 0.4-0.5 mm and its content is not less than 15-20 %, since finer sand, especially in high concentrations, can significantly worsen the plastic properties of raw materials [Ibid., p. 25].

Thus, clays with a low content of powdery sand and, therefore, rather plastic (96.2%) were most often used; highly sanded ones were found only in five samples (3.1%).

Observations of the characteristics of clay raw materials can provide certain information about its sources, in particular, to identify "facts of using different or very similar sources of plastic raw materials" [Ibid.]. The qualitative composition of natural impurities indicates the intended" area "of production, and their ratio indicates the conditional" place "of production within the "area" [Ibid.]. A. A. Bobrinsky notes that "data on the ratio of natural impurities may vary within the "area" due to differences in the extracted raw materials, for example, in the depth of its occurrence. The qualitative composition of natural impurities turned out to be more reliable for unambiguous explanations" [Ibid., p. 26].

Applying this method to the studied material, it can be concluded that ozheleznennye clays 1, 2-4 belong to the same "area", but different" places " of raw material extraction: all of them contain a natural admixture of sand and rare inclusions of brown ironstone. Clays 1a, 5-7 with different qualitative compositions of natural admixtures can be associated with different "regions". Thus, clay 1a is characterized by inclusions of clay shale, clay 5 is probably feldspar, non-ironed clay 6 contains a large amount of clastic loose brown ironstone, and oolitic brown ironstone occurs in non-ironed clay 7.

As an artificially introduced mineral raw material into the molding mass, the potters used granite-gneiss gravel and sand. Organic additives are represented by solutions, probably manure squeezes.

Preparation of raw materials. Most of the vessels are made of natural clay in a wet state (98.8%). The use of pre-dried and crushed clay is recorded only for one sample. Two vessels are made of a mixture of non-ironed and ironed clays, and in one case the first was dry, the second wet, and in the other - both in a wet state.

The distribution of ceramic samples according to the maximum grain size of wood is as follows: 1.1-2.0 mm - 65 copies., 2,1 - 3,0 - 82; 3,1 - 4,0 - 13 and 4.1-5.0 mm - 1 copy. Groups of vessels with a 1 - 2 and 2 - 3 mm discus size noticeably predominate (40.4 and 50.9%, respectively). In most cases, the wood is not calibrated, and grains of 0.3 mm or more are usually found in each sample. In four grain samples, less than 0.3 - 0.4 mm is very small, so it can be assumed that it is sieved in order to remove the smallest fraction formed during crushing.

Thus, at the stage of preparation of raw materials, the tradition of using natural clay in a wet state and uncalibrated gravel with a maximum grain size of 2 - 3 mm prevailed.

Composing the molding compound. The following recipes for molding masses are recorded: clay + gravel; clay + gravel + organic solution; clay + gravel + organic matter of unknown origin; clay + sand + organic solution (Table 1).

The most common recipe was G + + D + Or (86.4 %), which mainly used lightly and medium - grained ozheleznennye clays (clays 1-3). It is also typical for vessels made of non-iron clays (clays 6 and 7). For the G + D recipe (6.8%), all types of clays were also used (with the exception of those represented by single samples). A rare recipe for G + P + Or is combined with non-ironed clay (clay 6).

Thus, the most widespread artificial admixture found in almost all ceramic samples is dres. Its concentration in the molding masses of different vessels varies from 1: 2 to 1: 4...1: 5. In most samples (96.2%), it is 1: 3 and 1:4, and there are no obvious relationships between clays with different degrees of sandiness and a higher or lower concentration of sand (Table 2). This may be due to the fact that the studied ceramic fragments come from vessels made by two groups of potters, one of which used weakly-and the other - medium-sanded clays as the main raw material. It can also be noted that in recipes with very weakly sanded (highly plastic) clay, more often a solution was used in a concentration of 1:3. Highly sanded clay 4 is represented by a small number of samples, so what should be done in relation to it?-

Table 1. Relationship between clay types and molding mass recipes

Note: D - clay, D-gravel, P-sand, Or-organic solution, O? - organic matter of unknown origin.

Table 2. Concentration of wood in vessels made of different types of clays

* The samples presented in columns 2, 4, and 6 proved difficult to accurately determine the concentration of desva.

Table 3. The concentration of dresva in different recipes of molding masses

* See the technical description in the note. go to Table 1.

either certain conclusions are difficult. Analysis of the concentration of wood chips in different recipes of molding masses showed that in most cases it is also 1: 3 and 1: 4 (Table 3).

As for the relationship between the grain size of the pulp and its concentration in the molding masses (tab. 4), then the following can be noted. The smallest wood (up to 2 mm) is more often found in a concentration of 1: 4 (15.5 % of the total number of vessels with this impurity) and 1: 3... 1: 4 (13,7 %), less often-1: 3 (8.7 %), and the largest (up to 4 and 5 mm) - 1: 3 (5%) and 1:3...1: 4 (2,4 %). In all three samples with a high concentration of wood (1: 2 and 1: 2... 1: 3), it is fine: in two - up to 2 mm, in one - up to 3 mm. Dres up to 3 mm in size is usually present in the molding mass at a concentration of 1: 3 (19.2 %) and 1: 3... 1: 4 (16,7 %), less often-1: 4 (13.6 %).

Another non-plastic component of molding materials is sand. This impurity was recorded only in one vessel at a concentration of 1: 2. Grains have sizes from 0.2 to 0.8 mm, but the fraction of 0.2 - 0.3 mm prevails.

Organic components of molding materials are the most difficult to identify and analyze. Various signs of organic matter were detected-

See Table 4. Relationship between the size of the gum and its concentration

wives in the vast majority of samples (151 out of 162). Among these features should be noted: a) prints of scraps of herbaceous plants; b) voids from highly crushed plant materials; c) films associated with the liquid fraction of manure on the surfaces of lenticular voids (thick red shiny films, colorless or reddish transparent shiny, thick dark brown "oily"). Probably, the manure admixture is associated with white loose lumps recorded in a number of samples, often with a cavity inside, in some cases 0.1 - 0.2 mm in size, sometimes 0.2-0.5 mm, which do not boil under the influence of hydrochloric acid. In some samples, traces of organic matter are so rare that it is difficult to attribute them to artificial additives.

According to the features of inclusions, several varieties of organic solution can be conditionally distinguished, which in this case means the so-called manure squeeze. All of them contain single or rare plant inclusions up to a few millimeters in size, a small plant fraction (usually fixed in the form of voids from burnt inclusions with a diameter of about 0.1 mm) in greater or lesser concentrations. The liquid fraction, on the other hand, is heterogeneous. In the fragments of five vessels, it is represented by bright red thick shiny films, clearly visible and often numerous. In most samples (from 130 vessels), the films are transparent, sometimes reddish in places, but almost always with spots of a thick dark brown "oily" coating. This variety is represented by two variants - with numerous and rare films (65 vessels each), which is probably due to different concentrations of similar organic components. There are six vessels in a separate group. Only a few large traces of plant inclusions are recorded in their fragments, and the small plant fraction is practically absent or very small. There are no films, but sometimes there is a nonuniform coloration of clay, especially at the edges of lenticular voids. In addition, almost all of these samples contain relatively large amounts of the light, loose inclusions described above, usually 0.1 - 0.2 mm in size. It is not yet clear whether this diversity is due to the different origin of the initial organic raw materials or to the different preparation of the raw materials. You can only record the differences observed during microscopic examination of vascular fragments.

Summing up the results of the technological study of a series of circular vessels from Gnezdovsky mounds in the framework of the preparatory stage of pottery production, the following conclusions can be drawn.

Gnezdovo potters were dominated by the tradition of selecting plastic (low - sanded - 42% and medium-sanded-45.7 %) ozhelezny clay. Plastic non-ironed clay (5.5%) and heavily sanded ironed clay (3.1 %) were used much less frequently.

The most common recipe for molding masses was G + D + Or (86.4 %), and the organic solution in most samples is represented by one variety. Molding masses without organic components (G + D) and with organics of unknown origin (G + D + O?) were recorded in a small number of samples (6.8 and 6.2%, respectively). The recipe with sand as a mineral impurity (G + P + R) is represented by only one sample. The revealed complex recipes cannot be attributed to the mixed nature of the tradition of their compilation, since the functions of impurities in each of them are different, and the mixing probably occurred at an earlier stage, outside the monument.

The analysis of molding masses showed a noticeable predominance of one recipe, which may indicate the relative unity of traditions at this stage of pottery production, and hence the ethno-cultural kinship of the population of Gnezdovo. The existence of different groups of potters who possessed similar skills in composing molding masses is indicated by the peculiarities of clay raw materials originating from various sources of its extraction.

Mixing of traditions is observed only at the level of raw material selection. The presence in Gnezdovo materials of two vessels made from a mixture of clays with different iron content most likely reflects the process of

adaptation of foreign potters to new sources of raw materials, which usually occurs when moving to a new place of residence [Ibid., p. 67]. This is confirmed by the small number of such vessels.

Another sign of the migration of potters can be considered the use of "plastic raw materials of the same grade", but different in pyrometric properties from the traditionally used one [Ibid., p. 71]. This situation is possible if the master who made dishes in a new place used clay raw materials that are close in appearance to the usual ones, but turned out to be unusual for him in terms of the degree of iron content after firing. Relatively few vessels made of non-ironed clay in Gnezdovo materials may indicate such "errors", especially since the degree of sandiness and, consequently, their "working" characteristics of non-ironed clays here are close to those of ironed ones. Such "mistakes" are typical for potters who are not familiar with local deposits of clay raw materials.

Two of the vessels considered in this paper deserve special attention. The first one (kurgan L-85, N 14) is not only made of clay unusual for local potters (clay 5), but also stands out among other pot-shaped vessels with a high shape. However, the recipe for its molding mass is traditional. This may indicate that the potter who made it probably belongs to the same cultural group as the population that left the Gnezdovsky burial ground. Another vessel (kurgan L-153, N 3) is made of non-ironed, lightly sanded clay according to the G + P + Or recipe, which was recorded only in this case. There are no facts indicating that this tradition of forming a molding mass is mixed with the dominant one. According to its shape, the vessel belongs to ceramics, the origin of which is associated with the Middle Dnieper region (Kamenetskaya, 1988, p.261). The technological analysis carried out gave one more reason to distinguish such ceramics in a special group, which may have come to Gnezdovo as an import.

Thus, the studied materials allow us to speak about the heterogeneity of local pottery traditions, but it is characteristic that at all levels the prevailing tradition and rarer ones are distinguished. This applies to the selection of raw materials, and its preparation, and the composition of molding masses. This picture may be related to the relatively heterogeneous composition of the population that left the Gnezdovsky burial ground. This is evident in the significant preponderance of potters who possessed similar adaptive pottery skills, along with the likely presence of craftsmen with other traditions.

List of literature

Bobrinsky A. A. Goncharstvo Vostochnoi Evropy: Istochniki i metody izucheniya [Pottery of Eastern Europe: Sources and methods of study]. Moscow: Nauka Publ., 1978, 272 p.

Bobrinsky A. A. Potter's technology as an object of historical and cultural study // Actual problems of studying ancient pottery. Samara: Publishing House of the Samara State University, 1999, pp. 5-109.

Gnezdovsky Burial ground: Research and Publications, Moscow, 1999, Part 1: Archaeological excavations of 1874-1901 (based on the materials of the State Museum of Fine Arts). - 160 p. - (Tr. GIM; issue 36).

Kamenetskaya E. V. O nekotorykh tipakh keramiki Gnezdova [On some types of Gnezdovo ceramics].

Kamenetskaya E. V. Keramika Gnezdova kak pokazatel ' torgovykh i etnicheskikh kontaktov [Gnezdovo ceramics as an indicator of trade and ethnic contacts]: Traditions and Prospects, Moscow: Pamyatniki istoricheskoi mysli, 1998, pp. 124-134.

The article was submitted to the Editorial Board on 13.01.10.

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